What if a woman arrives at Mount Athos undisturbed, unrestrained? What if it’s her voluptuous figure reclining on the olive tree’s branch of the monk’s silk-threaded embroidery? What if she gazes out at the monk as the monk gazes, amazed, at the design? What if they each hesitantly take pleasure in the sudden eye contact? Her hands take hold of the holy mountainman. The mountain shifts its longing.

Monastery

As if song could strip all human desire each Psalm of fingered ritual where the Chama flows. As if that morning air, cool abandonment where she enters five days of monastic life fools him into fire. No. Yes. The fire against solar dimness. That monk. As if her then that astonished man. As if they plough through bells. As if they shape-shift, quartz in the shape of a whale's jaw embedded in red rock canyon. Vastness. Behind the drawn shades a tree inches closer to the edge of the highest. As if the man’s wide eyes and want are damned by the body leaning damned by the floorboard and stone the singular tree the clam- orous brink. The music here Gregorian – Darkness follows, shadowless cliffs touch close to some god touch close to the goat the tepid water pray for my leave-taking. Touch that. Vespers about to begin. I’ve loved the folds in my napkin, as if the spirit who tomorrow, with passion and momentary triumph, chooses solitude. And so the monk and I have something to release, a small addiction to broken bread and a delicate palm open.

Catherine Strisik

Catherine Strisik, author ofThousand-Cricket Song, 2010; her manuscripts in progress have placed as finalists and semi-finalists in many national poetry contests including the Vassar Miller Poetry Prize, Cleveland State Poetry Prize, University of Wisconsin Poetry Series, Kore Press, The Washington Prize, and WordWorks Poetry Prize. She is currently writing her third collection, The Mistress. Strisik has studied poetry for decades both on her own and with mentors such as Scott Cairns, Dana Levin, Joan Houlihan, has attended numerous conferences and workshops such as Squaw Valley Community of Writers, Colrain Manuscript Conference, Arizona State University Writers' Conference, Recursos de Santa Fe, Aspen Writer's Conference, and at the Vermont Studio Center. Her varied and many publications include Drunkenboat, Tusculum Review, Comstock Review, Awakenings Review, Cider Press Review, Studio and others. She is co-editor of the online journal, Taos Journal of Poetry and Art.